After a failed coup attempt, Bolivia regains its composure
-
Loading... - Kelly Dyson
- 09 Jul 2024
- 64 Views
- 0 Like
- 0 Comment
After a failed coup attempt, Bolivia regains its composure. A group of Bolivians gathered in the streets of La Paz, the nation's capital, to show their support for democracy and the troubled President Luis Arce.
The crowd chanted in front of the Bolivian Special Forces headquarters, where military officers and the former army chief General Juan Jose Zuniga, who is suspected of being the leader of the failed coup, were being held.
In La Paz, where armored vehicles had rammed the doors the night before and witnesses claimed soldiers had entered the building, security personnel also guarded the facility and damaged the gates of the governmental palace.
During the day on Wednesday, Zuniga, who had been stripped of his command, and his military units had gathered in Plaza Murillo, the square in front of the palace. Zuniga told reporters he was trying to restore democracy and cited the nation's growing discontent.
The president swore in Jose Wilson Sanchez as Zuniga's replacement as military commander inside the palace.
Video from inside the royal residence showed a second during the occasions when Arce stood up to Zuniga and told him in the event that he regarded military order, he would pull back his powers.
Following a few hours, the troopers in a line of military vehicles left as many Arce's allies hurried to the square waving Bolivian banners and police assumed command over the area.
Bolivian Inside Priest Eduardo del Castillo said Zuniga was subsequently captured, alongside the previous top of the Bolivian naval force, Juan Arnez Salvador.
Arce spoke to his supporters, who had already swarmed the streets, from the balcony of the palace. Much obliged to you to the Bolivian public," he said. " Keep democracy going.
Strains in the Andean country of 12 million have been high for a really long time, with a monetary slump provoking road fights. The fact that former leftist President Evo Morales intends to challenge former ally Arce in the upcoming elections has caused a significant divide within the ruling socialist party.
At a certain point Wednesday, Zuniga said, without giving proof, that Arce had requested that he "raise something up" to support the president's notoriety.
The Associated Press reported that the remarks stoked a flurry of speculation about what actually transpired. Opposition senators and critics of the government echoed the accusations and referred to the mutiny as a "self-coup," a claim that the government of Arce strongly refutes.
According to the White House, President Joe Biden of the United States called for calm and that the administration was keeping an eye on the situation. U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres expressed deep concern about the situation through his spokesperson.
Latin American leaders urged respect for democracy and condemned the alleged coup attempt.
